The invention relates generally to a vehicle battery charger, and, more particularly, to a lighted clamp for use in a vehicle battery charger.
Batteries composed of one or more electrochemical cells capable of converting chemical energy into a more readily usable form of electrical energy are widely employed in many industries and applications. For example, many such batteries are starting, lighting, and ignition (SLI) batteries capable of starting the internal combustion engines of cars, trucks, motorcycles, and other vehicles. Vehicle batteries of this type can typically be discharged and replenished with charge in multiple cycles before the life cycle of the battery is depleted. In addition, deep cell batteries are capable of providing continuous electrical and/or motive power to vehicles such as golf carts. Such batteries are typically discharged slowly and almost completely before being recharged.
Battery chargers are typically used to replenish the charge stored in vehicle batteries for a number of reasons. The vehicle may be stored for a long time without use, a light left on while the vehicle is not running may drain the battery, or the battery may simply be old and in need of an additional charge. Battery chargers typically include one or more charging cables for conveying the electrical charge to terminal clamps, which are secured to the vehicle battery terminals during charging. In addition, battery chargers typically feature a grid power cable, which transfers electricity from the grid to power the battery charging process. When not in use, these multiple cables and terminal clamps may become tangled or lost in storage. In addition, damage caused to the charging cables due to improper storage may affect the quality or safety of the battery charging process. Therefore, it is now recognized that there exists a need for a battery charger with improved cable storage for when the charger is not in use.